Monday, May 19, 2014

Quan Yin is a diety in
Buddhist tradition. She is the embodiment of compassionate loving kindness.As
the Bodhisattva of Compassion, she hears the cries of all beings.

In many images she is
depicted carrying the pearls of illumination. Often she is shown pouring a
stream of healing water, the "Water of Life," from a small vase. With
this water all living things are blessed with physical and spiritual peace. She
holds a sheaf of ripe rice or a bowl of rice seed as a metaphor for fertility
and sustenance. The dragon, an ancient symbol for high spirituality, wisdom,
strength, and divine powers of transformation, is a common motif found in
combination with the Goddess of Mercy.

Guan Yin, as a true
enlightened one, vowed to remain in the earthly realms and not enter the
heavenly world until all other living things have completed their own
enlightenment.

The name Guan Shi Yin,
as she is often called, means literally "the one who hears the cries of
the world."

Ancient Prayers for Love and Peace

Do everything with a mind that lets go.Do not expect any praise or reward.If you let go a little, you will have a little peace.If you let go a lot, you will have a lot of peace.If you let go completely, you will know complete peace and
freedom.Your struggles with the worldwill have come to an end. Insight Meditation - Achaan
Chah

St. Francis of Assisi – 13th century

Lord, make me an
instrument of Thy peace;where there is hatred, let me sow love;

where there is injury, pardon;where there is doubt, faith;

where there is despair, hope;where there is darkness, light;and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master,grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;to be understood, as to understand;to be loved, as to love;for it is in giving that we receive,it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.

Lao Tzu– 6th Century BC

If there is to be peace in the world,

There must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the
nations, There must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the
cities, There must be peace between neighbors. If there is to be peace between
neighbors,

There must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the
home, There must be peace in the heart. Chinese Philosopher -

Thursday, May 8, 2014

Confucius, the Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad were all born into
ancient cultures in the midst of tumultuous changes. Each addressed fundamental
existential problems within their societies, developing codes of ethics and behavior
that broke with the past, and offering bold new visions of human life.

Confucius:
China's primordial philosopher and sage, whose teaching integrally shaped the
Chinese constructs of government, human relations, culture, and history. The
Confucian thought formed the basis of Chinese education for 2,000 years. He
founded the core precepts of "uncommon" humaneness, reciprocity, and
the creative power of virtue.

The Buddha: A
high-born prince who turned his back on a life of privilege to follow an unrelenting
quest for the "supreme state of sublime peace." His teachings are
about the nature of reality, the delusions of human perception, and the
practical means for ending suffering.

Jesus of Nazareth: Is a
beloved icon of Christianity, a revered prophet in Islam, and the dominant
figure in Western culture for nearly two millennia. His archetypal dual role as
both harbinger of God's kingdom and spiritual teacher, revealed a liberating
alternative to humanity's oppressive inequities.

Muhammad:
Al-Lah's "last" prophet and the central example of the faithful
Muslim. His teachings brought Islam into being even as he struggled with the
roles of both political and military leader of his community. Muhammad teaches
oneness and inscrutability of the absolute.

Confucius,
Buddha, Jesus, and Muhammad were visonary sages that play a monumental role in
our world. Their teachings lead to liberation from the conditioned mind and
freedom from suffering. Perhaps today we can all take time to move closer to
spirit and evolve to a higher state of being.